604 C63

Bought some new rims, and going to (sooner or later) sell my OEM 2012 19's.
My intent was to swap the rubber over and sell just the rims.

Should I swap the TPMS sensors over as well and just sell bare rims, or is that a hassle or a risk of breaking them?

As long as the rims are priced correctly, does having/not having the sensors make a difference on the resale ability of the 19s, given that they'll need rubber anyways? I was actually thinking that leaving them on may be a little risky for shipping if theres no rubber to protect them, but a buddy just said "well, you gotta sell them with the sensors" and got me thinking.

No experience in this department as my prior cars were PFL, and those didn't have the sensors here in Canada, so TIA.

TheInfamousDrew

Swapping over the sensors is easy.
They're attached to the wheel with a small collar that screws over the valve stem.
Only thing to consider is battery life. On Porsche, they only last about 4-5 years. These may last longer, I'm not 100%.

roadkillrob

As above, swapping is easy, just a nut retaining them and the MB ones are pricey, so worth keeping as you won't get a lot more for them on the wheels compared to the several hundred they cost. The general statement is they last 5 -12 years with an average of 7. It has to do with how many times it transmits, so they last longer if you drive less miles per year and drive more highway than city. My 2008 BMW is 10 years old last week and still has working original sensors in it.

Vladds

Do the Mercedes sensors get recognized automatically, without any programing, when you swap rims?


I think it's more desirable to have the sensors with the rims.
When I sold wheels for my other cars, I sold them with the worn tires, using them as part of the packaging

TheInfamousDrew

Yes they do. I just put a set on the other day that didn't come with my car.
They were recognized immediately.

Diabolis

Contrary to popular belief, TPMS sensors are just about the only part where OEM MB does not cost any more than aftermarket. A set of 4 new MB TPMS are $360 CAD from the dealership parts dept., which is the cheapest I've seen aftermerket ones go for and they're guaranteed to work with your car (MB Canada was using three different kinds just on the W204 so they will cross-reference them to your VIN). If they're relatively new, I'd keep 'em - they last about 5-6 years. If they're already four years old, I'd just get a new set. If you're concerned about shipping damage, take them all off and tape them to the inside of each wheel where they are unlikely to get damaged by shipping.

zcct04

$360 CAD is what, about $270 USD? Pricing options in the US are much better. I needed a set last year and the dealer prices horrified me. I bought an aftermarket set of 4 via Amazon for about half that price and they have, so far, worked great. If you want someplace where you have immediate recourse if there are problems, Tire Rack is pricing them at $208 USD with free shipping.

604 C63

Thanks guys. I think I am just going to swap em over, and price my old rims accordingly.
Keeps the upfront investment down, and I doubt I recoup my investment in terms of a new set.

I have the winters on now, so perfect time to get everything swapped and the old rims shining for resale!

Diabolis

Pricing options on anything in the US are much better.

Tire Rack is indeed very decent and reputable, but by the time you get the items shipped, brokered and taxed here they end up costing more or less the same. AFAIK shipping to Canada is not free, and while with Tire Rack you also pay the duties and import fees up front, by the time they get here they end up costing the same as from other local sources. It is usually the brokerage fees that make it impractical to shop from the US... all the couriers are still going to charge $80 for the paperwork to clear it across customs even if no additional duties are imposed. $20 is the limit where it gets across for free via USPS.

Alex.currie44

When I got my winters from 1010 Tire in Mississauga one question the guy asked was for the VIN because the parts they sell are not universal in application. These things work on 433 MHz and 315MHz.
They shipped TPMS ITM Uni-Sensor for German Cars 433MHz (0803HR) at $79.99 each and they mated up fine. You will not avoid a nagging warning if you do not have them as you cannot shut off ths TPMS system.

Diabolis

Correct... I mentioned that as well. There were several different (incompatible) TPMS sensors used with the W204 cars, at east on this side of the border.

Alex.currie44

Check out this link. Not sure about quality obviously and may be one of those too good to be true things.
https://www.amazon.ca/AUTOS-FAMILY-A...toring+sensors

604 C63

I'm fortunate in that I live about 45 minutes from the border and have a US mail drop. Even if I pay all taxes etc (and a lot of time they have ZERO interest in collecting it) it is still a lot faster and cheaper and worth the drive. I hate the way some stuff makes it into Canada right away and other stuff seems to go via the south pole cos it has to clear customs.

604 C63

Thats so cheap it scares me! I see its another seller other than Amazon, and he has several 5 star items but those all have only one review. Anything with multiple is rated lower.....for what thats worth. They are all "verified purchasers".

I did however manage to recently find a 3 pack of HP toner on there that was only about $8 more than a single from Staples or anywhere else. I kept expecting it to be refill, but it showed up the real deal.

zcct04

I rechecked price on my last purchase - I actually paid about $58 US for a set of four. I found them on ebay (using p/n A0009050030 for a FL US car) and there are still lots of them listed in that price range.

Diabolis

OK... now that does set off alarms. A TPMS sensor that someone sells for $15 costs maybe $5 to make, and a $5 TPMS sensor cannont possibly be a quality product. Maybe they have old batteries, maybe they have cheap pressure transducers that are off by more than 2%, maybe they're made of crappy plastic that will shatter when it's -20C and you drive off... whatever. Personally I wouldn't touch them at that price. The mere thought of having to take the car in, taking off the wheels, dismounting the tires to replace the sensors, mounting and balancing and putting them back on the car (not to mention the new sensors themselves) is enough to make me spend the $200 difference in price between these and the MB OEM ones. Been there done that... and IMHO you usually get what you pay for.

zcct04

^^
Which takes us back to the MHB post and our discussion about quality and third-world manufacturing. Yes, I probably contributed to the problem with that purchase, and yes it's probably not a good option for daily use, but I just needed something for track tires and was more interested in preventing the dash alert than in knowing exact values.

Diabolis

^ Oh - in that case it makes perfect sense! On the track rat the tires last me for maybe two events, so yeah, if you're popping them off anyway then you can go with the cheap alternative seeing as it doesn't affect anything. And, in the MHT post I stated that some things made overseas are not necessarily inferior to things made here... but not that all things made overseas are equally good.

Alex.currie44

You want to have real fun look at the pricing of G8 and G4 Halogen bulbs used for task lights amongst other applications in your local hardware. $5.23 will get you a private lable 12V 20W Halogen and $10.99 3 xenon replacements.
I just ordered 10 G4 LED 12v 20W replacements for $1.49 US free shipping.

Diabolis

Alex - I agree. The difference is that a light bulb is easy and cheap to replace (and takes all of thirty seconds, with a minimum of inconvenience)... the TPMS sensors are not.

Alex.currie44

You missed the context of my comment. I was replying to 604 C63's comment "I did however manage to recently find a 3 pack of HP toner on there that was only about $8 more than a single from Staples or anywhere else. I kept expecting it to be refill, but it showed up the real deal."

I was not suggesting that a TPMS swap is easy. Just havin' some fun with expensive hardware stores that ***** about us online shoppers taking their business away when they treat us like dead tree stumps as if we are too dumb to figure a work around their stupid practises.

Diabolis

Gotcha.

chrisridebike8

Unrelated but changing a light bulb on an Audi is harder than changing a TPMS sensor. You have to take off the front bumper and the headlights to do it. At least the B7 RS4. Moronic! I hate working on Audis.

Diabolis

I know - I had one! And, don't forget the walnut shell blasting of the intake manifold and valves every six months to get rid of the carbon buildup... that was easily just as much fun!

604 C63

I will never again own an Audi off warranty. Not because of reliability per se, but because a 1.5 hr job on anything else is 4 hrs on an Audi. At least. Their designs do not care a lick about service time, and I refer to it as the "Audi Stealth Gouge". Doesn't affect them in warranty period cos its all stuff they rarely have to touch, and they make a mint off people who dont know any better bringing their off warranty cars to the dealer.

Removing the bumper and headlights to change a bulb doesnt surprise me in the least.